That core lasted until 2011, when Colorado bolted for its Pac-12 neighbors and Nebraska for the Big Ten. Texas A&M and Missouri left the following year for the SEC.

As the Big 12 struggles foremost with perception, how are its new members -- TCU and West Virginia debuted in 2012 -- doing relative to its former conference mates? Here's a football-specific breakdown of how the four teams to leave the Big 12 and the two to join have done in that time.

They left

Colorado Buffaloes

Justin Edmonds/Getty Images

BOULDER, CO - NOVEMBER 26: Defensive back Chidobe Awuzie #4 of the Colorado Buffaloes recovers a fumble during the third quarter against the Utah Utes at Folsom Field on November 26, 2016 in Boulder, Colorado. Colorado defeated Utah 27-22 and win the Pac-12 South. The Buffaloes will play Washington next week in the Pac-12 Championship. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)

League: Pac-12When they left: 2011Conference/division titles in that time: 1Bowl game appearances: 1

Analysis: The Buffs went 5-7 in 2017 and have gone 29-59 since joining the Pac-12. After leaving the Big 12, Colorado didn't make a bowl game until 2016, when Mike MacIntyre, who joined the program in 2013, led the team to a 10-win season. Following that season, four Buffs made it to the NFL -- including two to the Cowboys, CB Chidobe Awuzie in the second round and DT Jordan Carrell in Round 7. It was the highest number of draft picks Colorado had seen since it left the Big 12. No Buffs were selected by the NFL in 2014 or 2015, when the school posted 2-10 and 4-9 marks, respectively. Colorado cracked the AP top 10 in 2016 for the first time since 2002 and closed the season ranked No. 17 in the country.

Nebraska Cornhuskers

Brian Bahr/Getty Images

LINCOLN, NE - NOVEMBER 24: Wide receiver Terrence Nunn #83 of the Nebraska Cornhuskers gets his toe in the endzone for a touchdown ahead of the diving reach of safety J.J. Billingsley #5 and cornerback Terry Washington #10 of the Colorado Buffaloes in the first quarter on November 24, 2006 at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska. (Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)

Analysis: After posting five seasons out of six with at least nine wins and bowl appearances in all six, the Cornhuskers fell to 4-8 in 2017, firing head coach Mike Riley and replacing him with Scott Frost. Nebraska's overall record is 56-35 since leaving the Big 12. Nebraska has just one division title in that time (2012, Legends Division) and was in and out of the AP Top 25 under Bo Pelini and Mike Riley. But the Cornhuskers are in a conference where Ohio State won the first-ever College Football Playoff after 2014, which is more than Big 12 members can say of the conference's 12-year championship drought.

Missouri Tigers

Tom Fox/Staff Photographer

the Missouri Tigers football players celebrate with the winning trophy after defeating the Oklahoma State Cowboys in the Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium in Arlington on Friday, January 3, 2014. (Tom Fox/The Dallas Morning News) 01042014xNEWS

League: SECWhen they left: 2012Conference/division titles in that time: 2Bowl game appearances: 3

Analysis: Missouri didn't just lose its in-conference rivalry with Kansas when it joined the SEC in 2012. It also lost some of its hype thanks to inconsistent performances post-move. In 2013-14, the Tigers finished a combined 23-5, even ending 2013 ranked fifth in the country and topping the Big 12's Oklahoma State 41-31 in the Cotton Bowl. But the past three years have produced a 16-21 record, although a 7-6 mark in 2017 landed the Tigers in a bowl. They've still stayed relevant in the NFL draft but after tallying nine selections in 2014-15, defensive end Charles Harris -- whom Miami picked 22nd overall -- was the Tigers' only 2017 draftee. Their overall post-Big 12 record is 44-33.

League: SECWhen they left: 2012Conference/division titles in that time: 0Bowl game appearances: 6

Analysis: Johnny Manziel carried A&M into the SEC, passing for 7,820 yards and 63 touchdowns in 2012-13 -- not to mention rushing for another 2,169 and 30 scores. The result: A&M went 20-6 its first two years after leaving, raised funds for a massive renovation of Kyle Field and felt good about its decision to leave the Big 12. But after three consecutive 8-5 seasons, A&M parted ways with head coach Kevin Sumlin and replaced him with former Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher. Life in the powerful SEC West has not been easy for A&M, though the Aggies have an overall record of 51-27 since joining.

They joined

TCU Horned Frogs

Andy Jacobsohn/Staff Photographer

TCU head coach Gary Patterson prepares to enter the field with his players before an NCAA football game between the Arkansas Razorbacks and the TCU Horned Frogs at Amon G. Carter Stadium in Fort Worth, Texas Saturday September 10, 2016. (Andy Jacobsohn/The Dallas Morning News)

Previous league: Mountain West (Western Athletic, Conference USA even before that)When they joined: 2012Big 12 titles in that time: 1Bowl game appearances: 5

Analysis: TCU, a member of the Southwest Conference, was left out of the Big 12 picture when the league formed in 1996. Since rejoining their former SWC mates as part of the Big 12 in 2012, long-time coach Gary Patterson's Horned Frogs have more than proven they belong in a Power Five league. 2017 brought more proof as the Horned Frogs went 11-3 and reached the Big 12 title game. In 2014, TCU went 12-1, claimed a share of the Big 12 title and almost made it to the college football playoff ... until they dropped from 3 to 6 in the College Football Playoff rankings and the Big 12 missed the big dance altogether. TCU's only loss that year: a mid-season 61-58 contest to Baylor. The Frogs destroyed SEC bowl opponent Ole Miss 42-3 in the 2014 Peach Bowl, and continued on to an 11-2 2015 campaign capped by a triple-overtime defeat of the Pac 12's Oregon in the Alamo Bowl. TCU's draft stock was formidable that year, sending five players to the league. A 2016 6-7 campaign and single draft pick was a step back. TCU faced Oklahoma in 2017's Big 12 championship game revival, falling to the Sooners 41-17. The Frogs finished 11-3 on the year and had three players selected in the 2018 NFL draft.

Analysis: West Virginia's best year in the Big 12 was in 2016, when the Mountaineers went 10-3 and even cracked the AP Top 10 midseason. But the Mountaineers' collective 43-34 record since joining is less impressive, hampered by their first three years when they posted a combined 18-20 record. However, including 2017's 7-6 mark, the team has posted five straight winning seasons under coach Dana Holgorsen and been to bowls in each of them. After nine Mountaineers were drafted 2015-16, just three combined went in the 2017 and 2018 drafts.

At a glance

OUTBOUND

School

League

Joined

Record

Titles

Bowls

Colorado

Pac-12

2011

29-59

1

1

Missouri

SEC

2012

44-33

2

3

Nebraska

Big Ten

2011

56-35

1

6

Texas A&M

SEC

2012

51-27

0

6

INCOMING

School

League

Joined

Record

Titles*

Bowls

TCU

Big 12

2012

51-27

1

5

West Virginia

Big 12

2012

43-34

0

5

*Conference or division

Revenue surge

A look at the increase in Big 12 revenue and distribution to its members through 2017:

Fiscal year

Amount

Per school*

2013

$198M

$19.8M

2014

$220M

$22.0M

2015

$253M

$25.3M

2016

$304M

$30.4M

2017

$348M

$34.8M

*TCU and West Virginia first received full distributions in the 2016 fiscal year.

Bowl results

How the Big 12 has performed in bowl games since TCU and West Virginia joined the conference: